Health, urban planning, societal, and demographic developments over the last 150 years have led to the expansion of cities through urban sprawl. This has a considerable impact on natural resources, the environment, and planetary health. One strategy which can be adopted to counter these negative effects is urban densification, the methods and mechanisms of which are discussed in other articles in this issue. This text focuses on its direct and indirect impacts on health. In particular, it describes the various mechanisms that govern the processes of salutogenesis (factors and mechanisms that support health) and pathogenesis that are constantly at work in urban environments. Healthy urban planning is proposed here as an effective preventive strategy to reinforce salutogenesis and reduce pathogenesis which can be adopted by local decision-makers and more widely promoted among professionals and the population.

Hosting mega sporting events (MSEs), such as the Olympic Games, requires host cities and their countries to make considerable investments that are rarely cost-effective in themselves. The benefits for local populations lie mainly in the positive legacy that these investments are intended to leave in the long term, particularly in terms of urban renewal and new infrastructure (facilities, transport, housing, green spaces, etc.). This article explores the links between MSEs and how they can impact health through urban planning, focusing on the most relevant health determinants in this context, such as physical activity and social cohesion. To this end, we have drawn up a logical pathway of the impacts on health and well-being and conducted an analysis of the existing literature. It appears that an intersectoral approach involving different stakeholders and skills is essential, as well as integration into the local environment and partnerships with local actors. Above all, the ambivalent nature of the health impacts identified calls for a clarification of the conceptual framework of "legacy" and how it can be measured.

A necessary response to a growing global population and increasing urbanisation, urban densification now has legal foundations in various countries including France and Switzerland, as part of the fight against urban sprawl. Although apparently simple, the reality of urban density is complex. It can be broken down into multiple indicators, none of which truly considers the human dimension, the living environment, or the experiences of residents. This article describes this complexity and presents the advantages and disadvantages of urban densification, the obstacles to its development, and the stakeholders involved. It also highlights the terminological debate between "urban density" and "urban intensification". The latter term, preferred by some practitioners and researchers, offers a more qualitative and comprehensive approach, integrating the diversity of uses, the quality of public spaces, the place of nature in the city, and the well-being of residents. Every approach to urban intensification must be carefully planned, adapted to the local context (resources, geography, history, morphology, etc.), based on scientific knowledge regarding the effects on health, the environment, and quality of life, and involving residents from the earliest design phases. Urban intensification must address the challenge of aiming for a more resilient, inclusive, and sustainable city.

Cities play a dominant and expanding role in human lives and civilization. As such, urban health is an increasingly important facet of public, global, and planetary health, and its profound links to other areas of sustainable development make it an important nexus issue. However, there is considerable variation in how urban health is conceived and understood, including different ideas about its scope and boundaries, proper remit, subjects, protagonists, locus and sources of authority, and relationships to other rubrics. These differences derive from the complexity of urban environments and the emergence and evolution of the field of urban health from actions and perspectives spanning multiple sectors, scales, and domains. Recognizing the value of diverse viewpoints and usages, we explore and clarify several conceptual issues and debates and propose a definition of urban health as a shared basis for strategic action.

Background:Children's health is shaped by their physical, natural, and socioeconomic environments. The objective of this study is to identify structural urban planning measures that can positively or negatively impact children's health. Specifically, we aim to explore how urban planning elements, such as housing, neighborhoods, play areas, and green spaces, influence children's well-being and health outcomes. Methods:We conducted a scoping review in accordance with the method developed by Arksey and O'Malley, Levac and colleagues' methodology advancement, and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline. We explored eight databases, restricting our search to reviews, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses that report on structural measures aimed at modifying urban planning to promote child health. Results:A total of 41 studies were identified for inclusion in this review. The thematic analysis identified: i) interventions aimed at modifying streets; ii) interventions aimed at modifying play areas; iii) interventions aimed at modifying contact with nature; iv) interventions aimed at modifying deleterious exposures (exposure to tobacco, exposure to school); and v) housing. The second level of analysis enabled us to identify and evaluate the conditions for implementation and effectiveness. Conclusion:The review highlighted measures that are favorable to children's health at the level of neighborhood urban planning and questioned the conditions for implementation in a French context.

This article is intended to be an initial report on the experiences gained while using HIA. Although it is provisional and pragmatic, it ought to provide useful elements for comparison with other territorial situations, both Swiss and foreign. The large differences between the three cantonal political-institutional contexts probably explain the profound differences in the way that HIA processes were introduced in each canton. Nevertheless, the article - through the concept of institutionalization - seeks to identify supracantonal elements. Finally, by presenting HIA implementation methods in different Cantons, it endeavours to demonstrate the existence of a common matrix in the Swiss context beyond the differences arising from the actual political-institutional situations linked to them.

Housing quality is one of the most important determinants of health. We now have a solid body of evidence to support this assertion, and to underline its influence on health inequities. Indicators that can capture the multiple health dimensions of housing are important tools for characterising the exposure of residents and for assessing the effectiveness of interventions. However, there is no comprehensive set of housing health indicators that can routinely provide information on the characteristics of health-promoting housing. This is why the French Haut Conseil de Sant & eacute; Publique has developed such an indicator, which it calls Domiscore. In this article, we present the construction and main characteristics of this indicator and compare it with another proposed by researchers in the United States, the Housing and Environmental Quality Index (HEQI). We then analyse their respective scope, as well as their advantages and disadvantages, focusing on the future introduction of Domiscore in France.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) and public health are often considered as separate policy fields, whereas there is a considerable potential in better coordinating their objectives and measures. Using an analytical grid (S2D grid) linking SDGs and public health objectives and comprising 6 thematic issues and 56 categories, the research team conducted an assessment of health promotion programs in the city of Lausanne, Switzerland. Their objective was to determine whether SDGs and public health concerns can translate into complementary policy objectives, and what was the level of achievement of Lausanne in terms of implementation, intersectoral collaboration and avoidance of redundancy, regarding the vast array of measures potentially dealing with SDGs and health promotion. Results show that measures implemented by Lausanne deal with 80% of categories included in the S2D grid, with a high level of intersectorality and a low level of redundancy. These results also emphasize the fact that linkages between SDGs and health promotion go well beyond the SDG 3 dedicated to 'good health and well-being', and that the S2D grid could be used as a tool in favor of organizational change, promoting the collaboration between stakeholders often reluctant to engage in public health policies.

Background Despite evidence of the major impact housing carries on health, many individuals still live in unhealthy dwellings. In France, the Domiscore has been proposed as a tool to assess the quality of dwellings with regard to their health impact, to allow for a better detection of unsafe housing and to improve dwellings. The aim of this paper is to present the method used to construct the Domiscore and test its relevance and usability. Methods The Domiscore grid, inspired by the Nutriscore, consists of 46 variables—such as air quality, light or outdoor view. Each variable is scored on a four-point scale using in situ observation, mandatory diagnostics and open access data. The sum of each variable’s score results in an overall risk score for the dwelling. The Domiscore was tested in two phases. During the first testing phase, 11 real estate professionals, health professionals and social workers used the Domiscore for on-site visits in different geographic areas of France. They then participated in a semi-structured qualitative interview. The second phase consisted in a public consultation with diverse stakeholders such as public authorities, housing activists and social workers, using an online survey to collect their opinions on the Domiscore’s relevance, understandability and usability. Results The Domiscore was tested on 28 homes. Variables completion rates were high irrespective of tester profile for all home visits (91%, SD = 4.7%). The mean time needed to fill in the grid was 1.5 h. The public consultation returned 151 responses. The Domiscore was deemed easy to understand, relevant, and rather easy to fill out. Most participants found the Domiscore useful for information gathering, awareness raising, detecting at-risk situations and agreed that it could contribute to enhance housing conditions. Its length was noted, although the inclusion of additional variables was also suggested. Conclusions The results of this study suggest that the Domiscore is accessible to housing specialists and other professionals for the evaluation of a dwelling’s health impacts and the standardized detection of dangerous situations. The testing process allowed for improvements in the grid and training materials for future users.

Health Impact Assessment (HIA), an inherently trans-disciplinary approach, is used to help evaluate and improve projects or programmes in sectors such as transportation, where new infrastructure is likely to have effects on health. This article describes the screening, scoping, appraisal, and recommendation steps of an HIA on a new 24 km highway around the conurbation of Strasbourg, France. Methods included a literature review and quantitative estimates of the health effects of air pollution and noise. Although planned, interviews and focus groups proved impossible due to political and administrative difficulties. In replacement, answers to a related public inquiry were submitted to a secondary, thematic analysis. The new infrastructure is likely to create or help maintain some jobs in the short term and might accelerate certain journeys, but it does not seem able to improve local mobility and air quality issues. It crystallises the dissatisfaction of a part of the local population and raises the question of the transparency of the design and validation processes of major infrastructure projects. Despite an unfavourable political context, the HIA approach described in this article was able to overcome methodological difficulties and obstacles thanks to creative research methods and trans-disciplinarity to finally yield relevant information and suggestions for urban health promotion.